On view
Floor 7
Date
1963
Classification
Paintings
Medium
Acrylic and gelatin silver print on canvas
Dimensions
Overall: 49 7/8 × 40in. (126.7 × 101.6 cm)
Accession number
2016.16
Credit line
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase, with funds from the Painting and Sculpture Committee
Rights and reproductions
© Rosalyn Drexler / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York and Garth Greenan Gallery, New York
Audio
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Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn perseguida por la muerte, 1963
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Alex Da Corte: Me llamo Alex Da Corte y soy un artista que vive y trabaja en Filadelfia. Marilyn perseguida por la muerte es un retrato de un recuerdo que no es propio, sino compartido en la cultura a través de los medios de comunicación. Se trata de un collage fotográfico de Marilyn Monroe y su guardaespaldas corriendo hacia el borde de un lienzo. Alrededor de sus cuerpos hay una fina línea roja pintada. Más allá de este rojo hay un vacío negro, que recuerda a la escenografía minimalista, algo como lo que podría verse en una obra de Beckett. Drexler era conocida por crear pinturas con imágenes encontradas, eliminando todo lo que no consideraba esencial para contar una historia o recrearla, creando así un nuevo recuerdo.
Rosalyn Drexler dijo una vez: “La violencia es lo más íntimo que le puede pasar a una persona”. En Marilyn perseguida por la muerte, la violencia que se ejerce sobre ella podría ser la oscuridad. Podría ser lo que está fuera del lienzo o fuera del marco. Aquí, la violencia podría ser uno mismo, el espectador.
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Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn Pursued by Death, 1963
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Alex Da Corte: My name is Alex Da Corte, and I'm an artist living and working in Philadelphia.
Marilyn Pursued by Death is a portrait of a memory that is not one's own, but shared in culture through media. Here it is a collaged photograph of Marilyn Monroe and her bodyguard running off the edge of a canvas. Around their body is the thinly painted red line. Beyond this redness is a black void, which recalls minimal stage design, something one might see in a Beckett play. Drexler was known for making paintings with found imagery, redacting all but what she felt was essential for telling a story or recreating a story, making a new memory.
Rosalyn Drexler once said, "Violence is the most intimate thing that can happen to a person." In Marilyn Pursued by Death, the violence put upon her could be blackness. It could be that which is off the edge of the canvas or out of the picture frame. Here, the violence could be you, the viewer.
Exhibitions
Installation photography
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Installation view of “Untitled” (America) (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, July 5, 2025-). From left to right: Robert Watts, Case of Eggs (with Rainbow Wax Eggs), 1964; Roy Lichtenstein, Still Life with Crystal Bowl, 1972; Jeff Koons, Jim Beam - Passenger Car, 1986; Lucas Samaras, Dinner #15, 1965; Man Ray, New York, 1917/1966; Andy Warhol, Green Coca-Cola Bottles, 1962; Jasper Johns, Painted Bronze, 1960 (cast and painted 1964); Gerald Murphy, Cocktail, 1927; Betye Saar, I’ve Got Rhythm, 1972; Mary Bauermeister, Homage to Marbert Du Breer, 1964; Nam Jun Paik, Magnet TV, 1965; Robert Rauschenberg, Satellite, 1955; Jean-Michel Basquiat, Hollywood Africans, 1983; Andy Warhol, Ethel Scull 36 Times, 1963; Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn Pursued by Death, 1963. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
From the exhibition “Untitled” (America)
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Installation view of “Untitled” (America) (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, July 5, 2025-). From left to right: Jean-Michel Basquiat, Hollywood Africans, 1983; Andy Warhol, Ethel Scull 36 Times, 1963; Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn Pursued by Death, 1963. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
From the exhibition “Untitled” (America)
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Installation view of The Whitney’s Collection: Selections from 1900 to 1965 (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, June 28, 2019- ). From left to right: Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn Pursued by Death, 1963; Jackson Pollock, Number 27, 1950, 1950; Edward Clark, Winter Bitch, 1959; Andy Warhol, Elvis 2 Times, 1963. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
From the exhibition The Whitney’s Collection: Selections from 1900 to 1965
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Installation view of The Whitney’s Collection: Selections from 1900 to 1965 (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, June 28, 2019- ). From left to right: Roy Lichtenstein, Little Big Painting, 1965; Marisol, Women and Dog, 1963-64; Rosalyn Drexler, Marilyn Pursued by Death, 1963. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
From the exhibition The Whitney’s Collection: Selections from 1900 to 1965